Facebook
Fark
Digg
Reddit
Stumble
Sam Morris / Las Vegas Sun
UNLV forward Anthony Bennett celebrates a dunk against New Mexico during their game Saturday, Feb. 9, 2013 at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Saturday, Feb. 9, 2013 | 8:05 p.m.
Related Coverage
- BOX SCORE: UNLV 64, New Mexico 55
- BLOG: UNLV never trails in key home victory against New Mexico
- Take 5: Resetting the storylines halfway through Mountain West play
- UNLV Extras: Assessing the damage after the Rebels drop to 4-4 in league play
- Rebels have only simple explanations for complex loss at Fresno State
- Rebels searching for better mentality heading into road game at Fresno State
- Rebels still receiving votes in rankings, but not as many as Mountain West foe Colorado State
- UNLV Extras: Plenty of missed opportunities to go around in Rebels’ loss
- Rebels trail the whole way in disappointing setback at Boise State
- All UNLV men's basketball coverage
The UNLV basketball team’s problems are far from fixed, but a 64-55 victory Saturday against No. 15 New Mexico was clearly a step in the right direction.
Yes, it’s tough to forget the train wreck of the past two games — playing uninspired in an ugly loss at Boise State, then trailing by as many as 16 points in falling at last-place Fresno State.
But, in what was deemed as a must-win game against New Mexico to salvage the season, the Rebels — especially in the first half — resembled the quality team they were expected to be.
Rebel fans, it’s OK to exhale. The season is off life support.
Unlike the past two games, the Rebels played with emotion, energy and aggression for most of the night. At times, they were too aggressive, which led to some ugly turnovers and rushed shots. Still, coach Dave Rice will likely take the good with the bad when it comes to playing with aggression, knowing the miscues from playing with urgency are better than simply going through the motions — see the defeats at Boise State and Fresno State, where a lack-of-effort was partially to blame.
Saturday, the effort wasn’t a question from the opening tip. The Rebels shared the basketball and had a good flow offensively, were intense on defense and rode the momentum of the near-sellout home crowd. And, when New Mexico trimmed the lead to just eight points late, the Rebels stepped up with defensive stops.
Here are some more observations from the game:
Anthony Bennett’s big-time statement: With the Rebels desperate for a good start to the game, their most talented player delivered. That, after all, is what McDonald’s All-Americans are supposed to do. The freshman started the scoring by knocking down a 3-pointer and capped a 9-2 UNLV scoring outburst over the game’s initial three minutes with a monstrous dunk on the fast break to bring most of the 17,738 fans in attendance to their feet. Two plays, three minutes and it appeared the Rebels’ problems were fixed. Bennett was the force inside he needs to be for UNLV to be successful, finishing with 17 points and 12 rebounds in one of his best games of the Mountain West Conference season. When Bennett is on his game, the Rebels likely will be, too.
Great effort from Carlos: Carlos Lopez-Sosa’s role has been reduced to a few minutes a game, if any. Saturday, he made the most of them. In five minutes at the end of the first half, he grabbed three rebounds and had an assist, feeding the ball from the post to an open shooter for a 3-pointer to help UNLV build a 14-point halftime lead. Lopez has several limitations, but in spot situations such as Saturday, can provide a spark — something he showed late in the second half by grabbing a loose ball between two New Mexico players by diving onto the floor. It’s the kind of hustle play the Rebels had previously lacked. Lopez is an above average passer, using good court vision to start the fast break after a rebound, or finding a shooter for an open look. More important, he’s a team player. Instead of sulking on the bench after having his role diminished, he’s constantly on his feet cheering for teammates. Fittingly, he was rewarded with some important minutes — he played 15 minutes Saturday, scoring two points, grabbing five rebounds and earning a loud roar from the home crowd for his hustle.
Problem No.1? Ill-advised shots: I’ve frequently defended Bryce Dejean-Jones for his everything-looks-like-an-open-shot approach, but consecutive air ball attempts on 3-pointers in the first half seemed a bit rushed. The Rebels had their best shooting performance in three weeks, connecting on 9-of-22 on their 3-pointers to make it tough to criticize the shot selection. But just because it falls doesn’t mean it’s a good shot. The Rebels are getting momentum and flow offensively, and don’t get me wrong, tonight’s effort will bring several diehard fans off the ledge. Still, they shot just 37 percent and had a few scoring droughts that would have spelled disaster if they weren’t playing at home. Jones and Katin Reinhardt, two players receiving most of the criticism the past two games, each scored 16 points. Credit to both for helping UNLV win the game. They were great. And, when the offense settles, will be better.
The ugly truth: Even with the win, the Rebels are still a middle-of-the-pack team in the league. San Diego State, Colorado State and New Mexico have played better and have more impressive NCAA Tournament credentials. UNLV is still solidly in the NCAA Tournament, especially with a quality win against ranked New Mexico, but if Selection Sunday were this week, the Rebels postseason draw would be disappointing. The good news is there are still two weeks — and home games with San Diego State, Colorado State and the league tournament — to enhance UNLV’s resume. Regardless, the loss at Fresno State will be an eyesore.
Ray Brewer can be reached at 990-2662 or ray.brewer@lasvegassun.com. Follow Ray on Twitter at twitter.com/raybrewer21.
Nice win Rebels! One game at a time. Enjoy this one and go out and shut all of us up by winning at AF.
By Mike O.
This is the first time I have seen this team be this drive on defense. Not one time this season have they been tht active start to finish. A light may have gone on that you have to respect everybody .
This may have been BDJ' s breakout....they say transfers need half a season to get the speed down....for most of the game Bdj was in control...( save the last possession) ...save the playground dribble for something other than critical possessions. Bryce defended...got steals...and rebounded.......that was huge....
Carlos increases this teams IQ big time....I like quint dell..but I carols needs the PT........
Wrong, wrong, wrong. They got away with the same mistakes they always make. Too many threes, too many turnovers, bad sets, lazy d by Bennett, lazy as a whole. We will all be back here soon saying the same stuff.
I know a W is a W but I'm still concern about the offense seems like we're stuck in first gear. Good to see Reinhardt and BDJ hit some big threes though. Just hope they could start being consistent more often than not. Just think if Moser was himself again, we sure could use his contributions and leadership on the court.
Nice game, Rebels. Learn, maintain the intensity, and move forward!
Bennett finally hd some intensity on defense and hustle.......he'll impress scouts more with his rebounding and defense than anything else.....
Open letter to Bennett: stay one more year......go check out a sports illustrated mag from 1990 where augmon and Larry Johnson stayed at unlv when both could have gone pro...you and moser should do the same. Once you get to the MBA it's a job....this however is funnnnnnnn
Stay another year and build something special......nba will be there...this ain't football....
@GURU - If you thought that Bennett was lazy on defense, then you need to watch the game again. He played with a lot of energy on defense, as did the whole team.
The field goal percentage was a little disappointing, but Reinhardt and Bryce Dejean-Jones had two of their better games of the year.
By the standard Bennett has set he played with a lot of energy. However from an unbiased perspective he still doesn't play with enough consistent effort. He takes plays off and takes the easy way out. He did play better but I still think his effort is far below his talent when those two things even out you get a superstar.
Well at least the statement that the teams problems are far from fixed is true. There's only one way to fix UNLV basketball, tell Rice to sit down and shut up, the more he tries to coach the worse they play. If he would let these boys play the way they can they wouldn't be a 50/50 team. He needs to work on thier ball handling skills in practice not running plays that are useless.
UNLV soundly beat the same team the tireless critics thought they'd lose big to, the same team everyone holds up as the shining, dominant star of the MWC. Can't we just enjoy the moment, and then move on to Wednesday's match-up against Air Force (which lost to, uh, UNR last night...)?
A Dominant win vs the conf leader & 15th ranked team in the nation. They never trailed nor was their lead ever in serious jeopardy. Why? How did THAT happen?
First, an intense & 40 minute commitment to defense. Katin & AB upped their D in a major way & Moser being on the bench helped in that area too. The def game plan was solid. Double the post with only interior help & extend & smother Williams, Snell, & Greenway. They scored a mere 20pts combined. We basically conceded Kirk's double double by design which was ultra sneaky given how he torched us in ABQ but we shut down & closed out on their difference makers in the process. The got no clean looks & had at least 3 or 4 threes that were prayers or the margin would have been worse. Pretty sweet tactical move by Rice & Co.
Second, the Rebels valued the possession!! There were countless 5+ pass possessions which resulted in clean looks with feet set. Only twice did I go "NO!" when somebody took a quick shot...as opposed to the usual 10+ times per game. I think Marshall being gimpy helped spread the ball around too as he tends to over dribble which gave the opposite side, Katin & BDJ, multiple high pick & roll sets too. We made them defend the whole floor & expend energy on D. And Carlos thrives in that kind of offensive set because he is a duel threat (great passer) where as Q & Birch are more one dimensional. Just a solid effort & great team win. It may not be the run & gun we want...but its winning basketball and the kind that is played in March. I'll take it.
I felt it was a very solid game overall, with not as many defensive and offensive lapses. The one thing that did really, really bother me is how poorly Katin handles the ball, it was scary watching him "drift" around with it and make bad decisions. I would also love to see Moser sit until the conference tournament and let his elbow heal. He looks so out of touch when he is on the floor, it's not even funny.
The offense was much improved with the team running actual sets and not as much of the 1 vs. 5 garbage.
Good win guys and keep up the intensity against Air Force.